Tech Tip: How to Use PlantMaster in Your Landscape Business
Anne Chilcott
PlantMaster is a plant database that can be used during sales presentations and for creating plant booklets for your customers.During your sales presentation, use PlantMaster to help you brainstorm with clients regarding plant options. You can create a slideshow of your favorite plants with PlantMaster and show them on your laptop computer. You can use PlantMaster's plant search to find plant choices based on your parameters. For example, you can search for trees that are deciduous, drought tolerant, require full sun and look good in a Mediterranean-style garden. Find these trees in a few seconds. Create professional plant booklets, customized for each project/job or bid, with PlantMaster. Each plant portfolio can include:
- A plant legend
- Plant pictures
- Succinct plant information
- Graph reports for plant size, flower color, flower bloom months, water requirements, growth rates, many others
- Month-by-Month maintenance schedule
The most used PlantMaster report is the Plant Briefs report (To download--right click, "Save Target As"); this succinct report has information for 4 plants on 1 page, with an accompanying picture. Our users tell us that this report serves to give basic information about the plants without overwhelming the customers and the picture gives the customer a good idea of what the plant looks like. This report can contain your company logo and contact information, which is great marketing for you. All reports can be printed out for clients or emailed as a pdf. You can send your plant legend (plant list) to CAD software such as AutoCAD since it will import a text file. You can also convert your plant legend to Excel. You have the option to email any report or legend to your clients. PlantMaster is a flexible and open system:
- Add more plant pictures (it comes with several thousand pictures)
- Add more plants (it already has thousands of plants)
- Edit any plant record so it conforms to your experience and micro-climate
PlantMaster is easy to use. A column of large blue buttons on the opening screen comprise the basic tools:
Manage Plants- takes you to the entire plant list where you can view pictures, information, edit plant records, manage photography, add plants to a project, copy a plant, add a new plant or delete a plant. This button gives you access to the primary functions.Search by Name- search for a plant by botanical or common name. Plant Search- peruse through the 500+ search characteristics to find plant choices for specific situations. Lists- create your own plant lists such as favorites, drought tolerant shrubs, natives, etc. Projects- create a portfolio for a client with your contact information, company logo, plant legend (plant list), pictures, concise information reports. Choose from 25+ reports. PlantMaster comes with a short-course training manual, a friendly internal Help File as well as phone, email and website support. You can take a tour of PlantMaster at www.gardensoft.com. The software runs on Windows XP and Vista and requires a CD-ROM drive and 1.4 GB of free disk space.
Anne Chilcott serves as Director of Operations for GardenSoft, a software development company for the green industry and the water conservation industry. Since 2000, she has worked primarily with the marketing, sales, technical support and training of PlantMaster, a plant database, and GardenWorks a landscape database. She also assists the general manager, Gerry Kiffe, with the development of software and websites for water districts and municipalities. Currently, Anne speaks to APLD groups and horticulture students about using PlantMaster and GardenWorks in their landscape business. Anne is married to Mark Chilcott, Director of Engineering for GardenSoft. They reside in Thousand Oaks, California with their 2 children.
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